Freedom

I caught a fish
In a tidal pool
And I set it free
In the big blue sea
But that very word
A misleading one
Is an empty one
Means nothing at all
Saw the fish again
In a trawler's net
Several days gone by
As they hauled it in
And I rescued it
'Cause I thought I should
And I threw it back
So it swam away
But again I saw
Several days gone by
That very fish
When I went to see
An exhibit at
The Aquarium
Which had opened up
In a nearby town
So I asked them there
Could I rescue it?
But they told me no
I could only look
I decided then
That I would return
And check up on it
To see how it fared
And for many years
That is what I did
And I named it Fred
Or Frederica Fish
Since I didn't know
Which sex it was
And I brought it treats
To give to the guards
To feed to the fish
At their feeding time
But I never saw
Whether "my" fish got
Any of the treats
That I brought for it
But then one day came
When my fish was gone
And I looked and looked
But it wasn't there
When I asked the guard
Where my fish had gone
He said, "Prob'ly died."
As they sometimes did
When I asked him what
Might have happened then
He said, "Dolphin food!"
Then he laughed a bit
But I didn't think
He was very nice
So I went to see
Where the dolphins lived
Feeling sort of blue
About my fish
And the dolphins swam
And they jumped and played
But the tank seemed small
So I asked them there
Could I rescue them?
But they told me no
I could only look
So I went away
Back down to the shore
In another pool
Swam a little fish
But I left it there
To be free...


copyright J. Shidler, 1995-08-06